Alert after pet goose found dumped at Shropshire beauty spot

Jo Jarnell, an animal rescuer from Ellesmere, said she found the goose yesterday at the side of the Mere. Its wings had been clipped and it could not fend for itself.

Ms Jarnell took the goose to a vets, but it died later.

She said: "I was on my way to walk my dogs near Ellesmere when I saw the goose at the side of the road. I could see it had a funny wing and it was very light when I picked it up.

"I took it to the vets and they examined her.

"She had to crawl along using her wings as she was weak. She also had a lot of calluses on her elbows from crawling as her wing feathers had been cut to prevent her from flying away when she was in captivity.

"The vet confirmed this and her poor body weight, which maybe explains why she was crawling as she was just too weak to support herself.

"This is a deliberate act of cruelty. It is also a criminal offence to dump a bird into the wild.

"I have contacted the RSPCA again to tell them the goose has now died."

Shaun Burkey, manager at The Mere Country Park, said captive geese being abandoned in the Mere was a problem.

He said: "It is an issue. People see the Mere and think it is a nice place for the animals to live out the rest of their years when they are no longer wanted.

"In terms of habitat management the geese do make a bit of a mess.

"It is an ongoing management issue.

"There is a fine balance with any eco system, and if captive species are introduced into the wild it can have a negative knock on effect for the rest of the wildlife on the Mere."

A terrapin nicknamed Jeremy was rescued from the Mere last week after Shropshire Wildlife Trust launched a campaign to find him.

Trust spokesman Luke Neil said domesticated animals should never be let into the wild.

He said: "It is a problem and does happen from time to time. Domesticated animals should not be let into the wild, they do not know how to survive."